Science Spies

Diverse work teams are highly sought after – in theory. In reality, people tend to prefer team members who are similar to themselves. Credit: The Creative Exchange, Unsplash | CC0 More Diversity in the workplace is highly sought in theory, but often still lacking in practice. A new study shows that people tend to favor

Researchers developed a two-part security feature that allows dynamic and reversible decryption. The figure illustrates an encrypted star pattern generated by raising the dielectric SiO2 layer by 10 nm. The star pattern is revealed when a thin-metal-coated elastomeric (PDMS) patch is applied. The star is 1 cm wide. Credit: Gokhan Bakan, University of Manchester More Researchers

DNA sequencing has revolutionized the way researchers study evolution and animal taxonomy. But DNA has its limits—it’s a fragile molecule that degrades over time. So far, the oldest DNA sequenced came from a 700,000-year-old horse frozen in permafrost. But a new technique based on the emerging field of proteomics has begun to unlock the deep

Throughout August and early September 2019, media around the world have reported on the extensive forest fires ravaging Brazil’s Amazon rainforest. Much of the concern stems from the Amazon’s significance to regulating the world’s climate. According to the Associated Press, the Amazon absorbs 2 billion tons of carbon dioxide every year — about 5% of

This video was made in collaboration with the US Census Bureau and fact-checked by Census Bureau scientists. Any opinions and errors are my own. For more information, visit https://census.gov/about/policies/privacy/statistical_safeguards.html or search “differential privacy” at http://census.gov. REFERENCES Differential Privacy in the Wild: http://www.vldb.org/pvldb/vol9/p1611-machanavajjhala.pdf Harvard University Privacy Tools Project: https://privacytools.seas.harvard.edu/differential-privacy Simons Institute Workshop Video Recordings and Articles Archive: https://simons.berkeley.edu/workshops/schedule/6281 Cynthia Dwork

Many of North America’s migratory birds are declining, but the mysteries about when and how birds migrate must to be solved to effectively protect them. A new paper in The Auk: Ornithological Advances, published by Oxford University Press, identifies a previously overlooked area that is critical for conservation: the region between southern Mexico and Guatemala

When threatened, Ocypode quadrata—a sand-colored Atlantic crustacean dubbed the ghost crab in a nod to its camouflage skills—emits a series of guttural growls. But as researchers from the University of California report in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, the source of this sound varies depending on the distance between a crab and

PARIS — Thales Alenia Space is shedding around 6% of its workforce while rolling out a new line of reprogrammable satellites it says will benefit from an Iridium Next-style production. Some 500 employees out of 8,000 total will be leaving the Franco-Italian satellite builder, many through transfers to other parts of its majority shareholder Thales

Credit: SMU More It was a puzzle about birds. Migratory birds are known to rely on Earth’s magnetic field to help them navigate the globe. And it was suspected that a protein called cryptochrome, which is sensitive to blue light, was making it possible for birds to do this. Yet many of these animals are

Credit: University of Illinois More Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have replicated one of the most well-known electromagnetic effects in physics, the Hall Effect, using radio waves (photons) instead of electric current (electrons). Their technique could be used to create advanced communication systems that boost signal transmission in one direction while simultaneously

For only the second time, astronomers believe they have detected a space rock that formed in some distant system before making the interstellar journey to fly through our own solar system. The object, a comet named C/2019 Q4 (Borisov), was recently verified by the Minor Planet Center. According to available observations of the comet, C/2019

Ice core drilled at Dome Fuji, Antarctica. Credit: NIPR More Contrary to conventional wisdom, sulphur production by tiny marine algae decreased during glacial periods, and is more closely linked to climate than previously thought, according to the latest research by scientists in Japan. A clearer understanding of the link between the climate and marine phytoplankton,

Professor Dame Margaret Whitehead. Credit: University of Liverpool More A new report, co-authored by University of Liverpool researchers, reveals that the gap in health between the richest and poorest in Europe is widening in many countries. The Health Equity Status Report (HESR) is The World Health Organization European region’s first ever report on health inequality.

To demonstrate the potential of artificial intelligence in space, ESA has been working with partners to develop ɸ-Sat to enhance the FSSCat mission. The hyperspectral camera on one of the two CubeSats that make up the FSSCat mission will collect an enormous number of images of Earth, some of which will not be suitable for

Credit: RUDN University More RUDN University mathematician has proposed a method for calculating the optimal trajectory of spacecraft with electric propulsion, whose thrust is thousands times less than chemical one has, but it is able to work for years. These motors are best suited for interplanetary missions. Mathematicians calculated the flight parameters of the space

Artist’s impression. Credit: Julia Beier A prehistoric crocodile that lived around 180 million years ago has been identified—almost 250 years after the discovery of its fossil remains. A fossil skull found in a Bavarian town in the 1770s has been recognized as the now-extinct species Mystriosaurus laurillardi, which lived in tropical waters during the Jurassic

Astronauts from five space agencies around the world take part in ESA’s CAVES training course– Cooperative Adventure for Valuing and Exercising human behaviour and performance skills. Credit: ESA – A. Romeo More Six astronauts, five space agencies and a fresh start into underground worlds to help prepare for living on other planets. ESA’s latest training

In the dim, red light of an alien sun, scientists have found the first evidence for water in the atmosphere of a rocky planet – offering a tantalizing new target in the search for life in the universe. The intriguing world, which goes by the impersonal designation K2-18b, lies 110 light-years away in the